Restoring Peace
by little1991
Summary: Mikado gets injured from the fight between Izaya and Shizuo, since Simon wasn't making his delivery at the time. Having been the one to injure him, shizuo looks after him. warning! my first fic, pairings: szmk, maybe some other pairings.
1. Prolouge

**Ahahah well, this is my first fanfic, and writing in English class is definitely not my favorite pastime so I'm not at all confident about this. But, a strange urge to write a fanfic has just overcame me one day, and with enough convincing from GuSiRuLi (thanks for the support!) I was able to go through it. This is a SzMk fic (it's shonen-ai, so if you don't like, don't read!), with perhaps some other pairings. Ah, I'll apologize beforehand if my bad writing ends up scarring you!**

**Now that that's done, my fic takes place the first time Mikado sees Shizuo, but I'm using the manga version, so Kida's not with him. The interesting twist is, that Simon isn't there...**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Durarara! or it's characters, and I'm fine with that, I just hope I can read more about it from Narita's brilliant work.

* * *

"_There are a few people that you should avoid at all costs"_

These were the words of warning that my best friend had given, on the first day arriving to this town.

When I first came here, I found that I had immediately wanted to go home, despite convincing myself into taking the long trip to begin with (it seemed quite dangerous, especially with all those rumors about gangs flying around, my parents didn't approve of this journey as well...). But, it was really a relief seeing Masaomi again, he really looked different!...but his jokes were still as lame as ever. ...Eh? Oh no, it's not that I was upset that they were bad, it's just that- in a way, it was reassuring in a way that he didn't completely changed... while I haven't changed a bit...

Umm... to tell you the truth, despite the excitement of coming to a new place, it was pretty intimidating stepping out of the dark subway to find myself staring at the tall skyscrapers that seemed to stretch right into the sky. This new world that my friend had invited me to, was different, no- _very_ different actually... from the hometown I grew up in.

People crowded the streets, noise blared from every direction, and brilliant lights lit up the night. It was definitely different, but was it the _"different"_ I was looking for? Suddenly, as if the city itself seemed to respond, I saw "it" nearly run me over! - the urban legend- **the Black Rider!** It was there, I think, that I began to look forward what this city would offer me. "I finally found it!" I found myself telling myself, "my life away from the normality that I disliked so much!"

...Or so I thought. On the second day, Kida continued his tour around Ikebukuro, it was between our conversation on what was our next meal that the word sushi had kept coming up. It came to a point where I believed that Kida had developed a mad craving for sushi while we were separated over the years, before turning to find that the source of the words were from a very big man towering over us. It was my first meeting with one of the people Masaomi warned me about. Well, he looked dangerous... yet- the one who warned me about him was talking so casually with him. He was certainly different (Kida was always one to exaggerate things... in fact, I still find the description he gave Simon-san to be suspicious), but not the kind that I was searching for.

Somewhere inside myself, disappointment was starting to form.

It only grew when we saw another man from Kida's list of avoidance. Orihara Izaya-san looked normal. ...At least, he didn't seem threatening at all, he was even smiling and greeting us pleasantly. I started questioning on Kida's definition of "dangerous." After all, the only other person who we haven't met from his list was a man who's name didn't sound at all dangerous, Heiwajima Shizuo.* But this train of thought went into a completely stop when I saw Kida-kun's face. ...I've never seen his expression like that before, Kida Masaomi- my carefree friend, was wearing what seemed to be a look of desperation. The situation was so unlikely, that I wondered if I had seen it to begin with. Maybe I was just bringing my own hopes up, but if Izaya-san can get him to react like that...(wait! If he can get him to be like that, that can't be a good thing!)

Kida told me that the dangerous part about him, was that he was unstable, but with even that, it didn't seem enough for Kida to mark him as someone to stay away from. Even his "unstability" didn't seem to be that bad either ...though I questioned his idea of wearing a parka on such a warm day...

Day three was the day when I was proven just how wrong I was. Maybe it had to do with the strangeness of the day... (I even surprised myself when I volunteered to be school council president.) Or maybe it was some divine retribution for going against my better judgment to leave Masaomi's side to go exploring, while he was doing his favored pastime of hitting on girls (...or at least I assumed it to be his favorite, after all it the subject of girls always returned in our conversations) Or perhaps I should have noticed that some interesting things were going to happen when Izaya-san showed me his strange "hobby" of stomping on girls cellphones...which only seemed to last a minute.

What he said afterward only continued to puzzle me, "_I've been looking for you_"while smiling pleasantly, as if saying that was as common as any greeting. Maybe the weather was really as chilly as Izaya-san's jacket seemed to state but I felt a rather disturbing chill crawl up my spine. Before I began to question what he meant, something came out of nowhere and hit him...

Eh? I wasn't sure whether to believe my eyes, but it was none other than a trash bin!...yes, I know they are something common you see outside...but I'm pretty sure it's not as common to see them flying at someone... at such force too, judging from Izaya-san's expression. "Iiiiiizzaaaayyyaaaa- kunnnn," I turned around as the perpetrator revealed himself. Clad in a bartender suit, it was none other than the man who introduced himself as Heiwajima Shizuo. I mentally checked him off Kida-kun's list only to realize...yes, Sonohara-san and I were stuck in between two of the most dangerous people of Ikebukuro.

The man was just as Kida-kun said he was, dangerous. He picked up the abused trash bin only to throw it again with ease. Izaya-san dodged it just as easily... I was glad he wasn't hurt, but... I silently pleaded that he stopped building up the man's anger even further. Orihara-san didn't seem to hear my mental cries as he only continued on in his ramblings. Masaomi told me that Orihara-san was an intelligent man, but the man was obviously no psychic.

...It certainly didn't help as the tension grew along with their banter. I began to panic as it grew to the point that I felt bloodlust starting to surround us. I felt someone bump into me, snapping me out of my thoughts, apparently Sonohara-san had felt it too as she moved closer to me. I needed to find a way out as soon as possible, my eyes darted around desperately searching for a safe way to escape, when- "Ryuugamine-kun!"

I looked toward Sonohara-san to find her looking at something that was flying in the air...w-what is that? I had no chance to answer my own question as it came toward me, having missed it's initial target. Masaomi's words shot through my mind "If you ever come across them, don't hesitate to run." But I couldn't... whether I wanted to run or scream, I couldn't. I was stuck like a deer in headlights, so I did the only thing I **could** do... I closed my eyes shut and waited for the impact.

It came, and quickly. I felt as if I was tossed around before I found myself laying down flat on the concrete floor. At first, I felt nothing but dazed, but quickly the pain had started to set in... and it hurt...really badly... The silent scream that developed in my throat had already died but, I already felt tears welling in my eyes. My head was swimming, I couldn't think properly at all... I tried moving my hands to find they were difficult to move, having such a stiff feeling. If I had tried to get up, I would've find that my body completely paralyzed. I didn't know where the pain was coming from and what just happened to my body, but what I did know was that... for sure, I was trapped. I really wished that my classmate didn't have to see me crying like this... but I needed help, desperately.

Gathering whatever I had left of my strength and finding my voice, I turned to the blurry vision of Sonohara before I was able to feebly utter, "...Kida..." (If Kida heard me, he would probably scold me for having my last words be his name rather than a girl, but the truth is... in this new world, he was all I had...) Whether or not she was able to hear my message, Sonohara-san ran from the scene to get help...or at least I hope she did... I wouldn't blame her if she wanted to just run away.

...Despite a chance of help on the way, I couldn't hold on much longer. My distorted vision was growing darker and darker and I felt as if I was sinking into the floor as the tall buildings were closing in on me. Before I knew it, this world that I found myself in..._**was painted black**_.

* * *

***Heiwajima Shizuo (for those who don't know): translates into peaceful island serene man**

**huu~ I think I just killed my brain for writing so much in a long time.**

**Anyhoo, this makes my prologue, (it's really lengthy, sorry about that)**

**I hope I haven't bored you too much, if I haven't done so already, please read on. I'll try to get the next chapter done as soon as possible, while the idea is still stuck in my brain.**

**Ah yes, please don't flame unless you _really, really_ have to, since I get discouraged rather easily. **


	2. Chapter 1

**Many thanks everyone for your wonderful reviews, alerts, favorites, etc..!**

**I hope you continue to support me as I continue to write this erm...story (if I can call it that...)**

**Anyhoo, just a short explanation, I'm only planning to have the prologue through Mikado's POV while the rest is third person. So if you thought it was going to just use Mikado's POV the whole time, I'm sorry I fooled you. I just thought it would be easier to explain the situation if I used the world through Mikado's eyes. I'm planning have things happening where Mikado isn't there so it's a little hard to stick with just his point of view...**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Durarara! or it's characters, and I'm fine with that, I just hope I can read more about it from Narita's brilliant work.

_italics-thoughts_

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"Mikado~! You there?" waiting outside of a run down apartment, Kida Masaomi had tried to summon out his friend for the fourth time. "Odd... guess he's not home."muttering to himself, while questioning why his friend had gone ahead without him to school. The teenager, with his raging harmones, found the his thoughts settle on one thing-girls.

_Could he have possibly went ahead hoping to have some Super Secret Lovey Dovey time with some girl alone? … come to think of it, he has had his eyes on the erotic Anri-chan... Maybe he's trying to impress her by coming earlier and do something like...i dunno... help with the desks? _

The boy mused over his thoughts, before he cracked a large smile.

"_Well, he can't have all the fun now, can he?" _with that last thought, the boy rushed to school with plans to disrupt his best friend's morning.

When he came close to the school, he noticed no other than Anri Sonohara searching for someone in front of the school gate. When she caught sight of him, she immediately ran to him.

"Ah, Anri-chan~ were you looking for me like I was looking for you?" "Yes, Kida-ku-"before she could finish, she was cut off by her eccentric friend. "Ah-, it must be fate, but then again, it's expected for someone who walks the path of popularity." "Umm..." "Ah, I almost feel almost unfair for someone like me to compete with ... speaking of which, wear is he? Could he have possibly left you here since he found some-" "K-KIDA-Kun!" shouted a rather upset Anri, before a small "...sorry" followed. "Eh? What is it?" _A rather troubled Anri is cute too, but that besides the point. For something to bother her that much...must be pretty serious. _He waited quietly for the girl to continue."Umm... it's Mikado-kun... h-he's disappeared!" "...What?" the smile Kida had on his face was wiped off completely. Noticing that she was getting his full attention, she continued, "we were stuck in the middle of a fight yesterday, and he got hurt really badly. I went to get help but...!" Her voice quickened with anxiety, "But!...When I returned, h-he wasn't there!"

An alarm went on in the boy's head. He needed to take action quickly. "Where was this fight?" Anri answered quickly, sensing the desperation in her friend's voice. Knowing where he needed to be, he dashed off, nearly running into his fellow students. Cries of "Hey, where are you going Kida?"and "School's about to start!" were heard, but they faded away as Kida continued to travel farther and farther from the school.

"Come on, come on!...Pick up! Dammit...!" It had been the thirteenth time he called. He was hoping that his friend went through a 180 degree change and has just decided to go somewhere on a whim and was just avoiding calls for attention... or something like that. Kida noticed he was well running out of ideas. Arriving at the street that Anri mentioned, he took a quickly scanned the area with eyes strained to catch any trace of his missing friend.

Something desturbing caught his glance. There was a familiar smear on the ground, a sign Kida had grown to know quite well with over the years. The sight of dried blood was something he remembered while he still lead the Yellow Scarves. He didn't want to think of something as unpleasent as the past, but it assured him that just because there is a such a mark in the place Mikado had gotten stuck in the fight, doesn't mean that it had to be Mikado's._ It could have been from a fight that had happened ages ago after all. It could also have been from does actually involved in the fighting._ The boy tried to assure himself, but a small voice in his head told him that it also didn't mean that it couldn't have been his friend's either.

Kida pushed the thought aside and continued his search, and to his disappointment found nothing that told anything that told him of his friend's disappearance. He knew it would have been fruitless to ask the people around about the fight, since most people would try to avoid being in such an incident. Sighing, he sat down before dialing his friends number, not really expecting him to pick up.

-Vrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr-*

_Hmm? Could that be?_ The sound familiarily close, straining his ears, he made his way to the noise. What he found only spiked his panic. There, under a store's advertisement sign was his friend's cellphone with it's red hue. Kida knew very well that his friend was fond of his phone. After all, he always seemed to be using it when Kida was flirting to nearby girls. _Come to think of it, he never seemed to enjoy the activity, wait- what am I thinking?_ Kida mentally slapped himself back to concentration.

If his friend had dropped his phone here than it was very unlikely that he was brought to a hospital or a police station. Kida probed his mind for answers. _After all, Mikado would probably ask for it as soon as he noticed it was missing. Then where could he- _

For some reason, an unpleasent piece of gossip crossed his mind. He heard rumors lately that in town people had starting to go missing...and were never found.. Kida started to dread his conclusion. _Could he have possibly been...KIDNAPPED?_

* * *

In a dark room, afternoon light has began to slip through the blinds, stirring a figure underneath some blankets. With more movement, the sheets slipped to reveal a boy with a childish face. The boy frowned slightly while rub the sandman's dust out of his eyes. Finally satisfied, he opened his rather reddish eyes; evidence of his past bawling. He looked around the room in his dazed state. Finding a rather plain yet well maintained bedroom in front of him.

_...Eh? This isn't my home? No- wait I'm in Ikebukuro now aren't I?...but even if I am, I shouldn't be here in someone else's house!_ As the boy began to panic, he searched for answers within his memories of the day before. _Maybe Sonohara-san or someone else was able to help me? _The boy's panic began to subside, but it quickly rose again with, _But then I would be in the hospital wouldn't I? _

In his panic, he rose up only to lay back down just as quickly as a jolt of pain ran through his body. "Oww!" the Mikado carefully raised himself, pushed the blankets away to see the damage, wincing slightly at the stinging his wounds were giving him. Examining himself, his body didn't seem to have been battered up badly. Only a few small scratches and a few bruises were there to tell the story of the ordeal he went through. But he became distressed when his eyes looked at the condition of his right leg was in. Apparently, couldn't walk without help anymore. He noticed that he had been bandaged and casted pretty well, at least from Mikado's medically trained point of view.*

Whoever did it seemed like a professional at it. _Maybe I'm in good hands? _Mikado hoped, after all someone who planned to do something terrible to him wouldn't go through the trouble of healing him would they?...whoever "they" are...

"Ah, I see your awake!" a cheerful voice startled Mikado out of his thoughts. He turned to the source of the voice finding it to belong to a man wearing a lab coat. Mikado nodded slowly as the rather lively man approached him. "Now let's see here," the man positioned his glasses before examining Mikado's wounds. "Hmm, most of your wounds were pretty light and would probably heal easily enough in a short amount of time, but that leg of yours...well sorry to say, that you'll just have to stay here for a few weeks so I can see if it's healing properly." The man finishing his diagnosis, looked up to find the boy looking at him cautiously. "Ah! I forgot to introduce myself, my name is Kishitani Shinra."informed the man called Shinra as he held out a hand which Mikado timidly shook. "Umm, my name is Ryuugamine Mikado, pleased to meet you. But... um, where would "here" be?"

The doctor looked at Mikado before coming up with an answer that seemed rather... unprofessional. "Hmm? It would my home, in other words...Mine and Celty's love nest!" he said it with such a wide smile, Mikado was pretty sure his face would split. "It's a nice looking home." Mikado commented, unsure of what to say to the man's latter part of his explanation. "It is, but it wouldn't be anywhere near as nice if Celty wasn't living her in the-" the man continued on with his rambling. Mikado gave a small smile at the man's enthusiasm. _He's a little odd, but he seems nice_,thought Mikado as he started relaxing. In fact, his enthusiasm reminded him of... _Masomi! I should give him a call!_ Reaching into his pocket, he noticed his phone was missing. Rather disheartened on how much he was going to have to save for a new one, he sighed before turning to the man who had finally stopped praising his precious Celty.

"Ah sorry, it seemed that I got carried away with my lovey-dovey talk" "Ah no, I just wanted to ask if I can use your phone?" "Sure, your parents must be worried by now, Mikado-kun seems like an obedient child after all." "No, my parents don't know about what happened, I came to this city because of a friends invitation. I just need to call him to let him know I'm alright." Shinra nodded, I'll go get bring it here, we can't have you walking with that leg now, can we?" with that he left the room to return with a phone.

After handing the phone, the man plopped himself down in a nearby chair. Watching the as he chatted with his friend. Expressions of happiness and relief crossed the teens face as he talked to his close friend. Shinra became rather amused when a rather flustered looking Mikado changed his expression to a blank stare, with overheards words of "Huh? Why would they do something like-", "Anri was-" and "...Masaomi is that all you think about?" were heard. It all ended when Mikado with a sigh handed the phone back to Shinra,who barely heard him mutter "Kida-kun is an idiot."

"Wah, you must be close friends, do you go to the same school?...it's a middle school right?" "Eh? No, it's a high school. We both go to Raira High school." the flustered boy tried to correct him as quickly as possible. "Haha, I know, I know, I'm just joking. In fact, I went to Raira myself along with Izaya and Shizuo. How nostalgic, makes me remember when we were all young and green."

The boy looked rather astounded, it seemed like the doctor knew the two quite well. If he knew who had done this to him, then... possibly? "U-ummm, excuse me, but...who was the one who brought me here?" "Ah, that would be Shizuo! To have been caught in between Shizuo-kun and Izaya-kun's fight, what a stroke of bad luck! You are actually pretty lucky, that vending machine could have killed you; squishing you flat instead of just your leg." Though the man was stating an unfortunate fact, the smile he still carried on his face made Mikado wonder if he had really meant it. "Gave you quite a suprise didn't he? After all, he's the one I know who has the most contradicting name." Mikado nodded in agreement, remembering the the violent incident that had nearly got him killed. "Ah yes, come to think of it, he's coming to check up on you tommorow." Mikado froze, _What? Why? What if he's upset that I got in his way?_ Mikado wasn't sure if he wanted to meet the man despite how "different" he was. Mikado had longed for the abnormal but after the recent event, he was wondering if he was biting more than he could chew.

Shinra didn't seem to notice Mikado's worried face as he continued to go on talking. "Hmm, at the moment, Shizuo is probably talking to Celty somewhere on a bench. Ah, she's in really good terms with him, it makes me really jealous sometimes." Shinra sighed before slumping his shoulders to whine, "Ah~, I want to go to the park with Celty too! Maybe some passerby would look at us and-" the doctor was once again stuck in a phase where he would continue his affectionate talk about his beloved Celty.

The next morning, Mikado woke up with his eyelids still heavy with sleep. It seemed that no matter how interesting the underground doctor's prattles were, Mikado was too tired to stay awake and had fallen asleep unknowingly sometime while the man was still talking. Looking around in a daze, he tried to remember what he was dreaming about. Ah yes, he had busied his head with thoughts of the bartender in his sleep. Whether it ended in a dream or a nightmare, the boy couldn't remember. But that did not matter...for today...whether he wanted to or not, he would meet the man in this reality.

* * *

***Honestly, I do not know exactly what sound is used to describe a vibrating cellphone...**

*** In the novel, Narita described Mikado to be able to bandage expertly that someone could mistake him for a class health representative.**

**Well, that would be another chapter done! (It soo long! T.T) Please keep sending your lovely reviews, as a beginner, I'm still not really sure if I'm doing okay. Your support is very much needed!**

**Ah, I'm going to be moving to a new house soon, so I'm going to try to finish another chapter before I do. So I could give you guys something to read while I'm busy packing and unpacking...**


	3. Chapter 2

**Thank you everyone for the favorites/alerts/reviews/etc.! I really appreciate the kind words and support you all are giving me, especially since it's my new story, and well... I'm still not sure if I'm getting the hang of it or boring you with the ramblings...Anyhoo...**

**Ah, sorry if this one came out a little later than expected, but was busy unpacking and packing boxes to prepare to move to a new place. I had a little struggle with this chapter as well, but I hope you enjoy it anyway...ahahah... I'm soo sorry if the characters come out as completely OCC, I was sorta distracted with moving... and returning open adobe photoshop product... *mutters: stupid retail return policies...**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Durarara! or it's characters, and I'm fine with that, I just hope I can read more about it from Narita's brilliant work.

* * *

"Good Morning! Did you have a nice sleep?"Mikado looked up to notice that the doctor had entered the room bringing a tray with what was presumed to be breakfast on it. "Ah, yes, I think..." Mikado replied timidly. He had slept well enough that he couldn't really remember what his dream was about, but on the other hand...could it had been so horrible that he instinctively forgot about it?

Shinra must have noticed his discomfort, for he spoke up again. "Hm? Not nervous about meeting Shizuo are you?" Shinra chuckled.

"Um... Actually..," the boy looked down.

"Don't worry," the doctor said in his attempt to comfort his patient, "he's only really scary when he's mad... but then again, he's gets ticked off at so many things, I guess you really do have something to worry about!" Mikado sighed._I know Kishitani-sensei really means well... but I don't think this is helping me at all!_

"I know what will cheer you up!" Mikado thought the doctor looked particularly jolly as he brought the tray to his attention. "Look Mikado-kun! It's a homemade breakfast Celty had cooked for us!" Shinra waited patiently to hear Mikado's reply and was pleased to see his face light up with the mention of his "Honey's" cooking "Uwah, It really does look delicious Kishitani-sensei!" It really was something to look forward to, Mikado wasn't able to eat a single homemade meal from the time he left home, he was really beginning to miss it.

He looked over the meal, a traditional Japanese breakfast. He took in the sight of the essential steam cooked rice, the fluffy rolled omelet, along with a still warm miso sou-

_grrrrruuu~_

Mikado turned red in embarrassment. He looked up, hoping Shinra-san hadn't heard, but the man just smiled at him with an amused expression.

"Ah- it's nothing to be embarrassed about. After all, hunger is a natural craving that happens to every living being. Your intestines are hollow structures after all, with nothing in them but air and digestive juices. When air and water are the only things in a hollow structure then it produces sound. So, the best way to fix this problem would be to eat your fill, no?" Shinra lectured with a smile. He waved his hand toward the tray to further encourage Mikado to eat.

Mikado, didn't need any more convincing, it felt like forever since he last ate. He dug his spoon into the rice and topped it with a piece of broiled fish. His mouth beginning to water as he popped his first bite into his awaiting mouth.

"...Urghhh?" Mikado coughed in surprise. _For some reason... the food tasted...off?_ Has it really been that long? Was he apparently so accustomed to eating ramen all the time, that he couldn't even taste any other food correctly?

In his disbelief, he dipped his spoon into the foggy miso soup, taking a cautious sip. He winced as the lukewarm soup slid down his throat...he found a taste that he had never expected to be in miso soup before. _Ugh... bitter? ...Is that even possible?_

Mikado shifted his gaze to the side to see if Kishitani-sensei was suffering the same effects. The man's face was far from the expressing any form of disgust. In fact, Mikado was rather surprised that the man was smiling as if there was no tomorrow. Yet... upon closer look.. Mikado couldn't help but question. _Is that a tear in the corner of his eye?_

Shinra must have noticed him staring, since the man had turned to wave his arm back and forth. "Ah, no! This isn't what you are thinking Mikado-kun. These are tears of joy! I assure you." Mikado on the other hand wasn't so sure but answered with a rather slow "...I-I see..."

As much as Mikado didn't like the meal, he didn't want to upset his host. _Maybe it's an acquired taste?_ He thought. But to his disappointment, as he forcefully swallowed another bite, it didn't seem to get any better.

While he was cautiously eating his meal without trying to look too disgusted, a distant sound of a door opening was heard, along with the sound of keys rattling. Shinra snapped out of his reverie and headed to the door. "Ah, that must be them right now!" he said, before he left the room to leave Mikado alone to suspiciously poke at his food before settling for another bite.

While he was chewing slowly, he couldn't help but listen to the conversation outside to distract him from the strange tastes that were gathering inside his mouth. It was rather faint, but Shinra's rather blissful (yet loud) tone couldn't be mistaken. "Celty~! Welcome home!" Mikado tried listening to the voice of Kishitani-sensei's precious "Celty" but strangely hear anything other than the familiar sound of light tapping on a piece of technology. Mikado was rather curious at this. Is_ perhaps Celty san a rude person?_ It wasn't particularly nice to text while someone was greeting them.

"Ah-Shizuo! You said you were coming here too didn't you?" This time, Mikado did here some slight mumbling, but even if he strained his ears, he couldn't understand the contents of the speech.

"The boy? Yes, he's...did I do anything weird to him?...Shizuo, just what kind of person do you take me for? …Eh, experiments? I'm not like... whatever, the boy is awake now so why don't you go talk to him."

Mikado froze, his chopsticks only going halfway to meet his mouth, but at the moment he was too terrified to notice that the tidbit of food had fallen from his chopsticks back into the bowl. The sound of footsteps were coming closer, and with each step, the boy's imagination began to run wild. Mikado did not have a good look at the man last time, he was apparently in a panic to worry about one's appearance. His recent injury didn't help his view on the man either.

_Ah- it's finally here! I'm going to meet him! But- what if...? _Mikado had pictured a scarred man with iron muscles, his head touching the ceiling entering the room, with a permanent snarl etched in his face. _W-what if he talked in anguish that I couldn't understand him? What if he gets frustrated over talking to me a-and?_

In his mind,Shizuo was picking up a nearby bookshelf crammed with Shinra's awfully thick books. The dispositioned bookshelf was suddenly thrown at him with a force. Mikado shuddered at the thought at his crushed imaginary self, but his thoughts still went untamed. ..._O-or, what if he was really angry that I got in the way last time that he..._ The imagined man now took the tall lamp before swinging at him as someone would do a baseball bat. The boy clutched his head in terror as he saw himself being struck out the window, the shards glittering around him. Before falling headfirst down the apartment complex, getting closer and closer to the road before-

The sound of the doorknob turning snapped him awake from the undesired result.

His heart was pounding loudly against the walls of his chest, whether it was out of anticipation or fear he did not know. Mikado reasoned that it could be both, with fear dominating his wits. The door was opened by a crack, by then, Mikado nearly screamed out loud. _NO! WAIT! I'M NOT READY YET! I DON'T WANT TO DIE!_

But the door, unable to even understand the boy's thoughts opened to reveal...someone Mikado did not expect. Well yes, the man was rather tall yet, other than that... Mikado could not draw any comparisons to the monster in his mind to the man in front of him who held the name Heiwajima Shizuo.

In his disbelief, Mikado looked at the figure again. The man was rather slim and didn't seem strong enough to lift a vending machine and certainly not able to throw it. He was still wearing the same bartender suit along with what seemed to be designer sunglasses. But what shocked the boy the most was the gentle eyes that were behind the violet hued glass.

Mikado was a person of common sense, the man has been confirmed as Heiwajima Shizuo. Yet, everything about the person in front of him was denying that it was the same man who had thrown a vending machine at him a few days ago.

Doubts along with questions filled his mind. _"Is this really Heiwajima Shizuo? Maybe Shinra-san is playing a trick on me?...but what would be the point of that?" _As he was pondering in his thoughts, he noticed that Shizuo was quietly watching just the same.

Feeling unnerved, Mikado spoke up hesitatingly. "U-um would you be Heiwajima Shizuo-san?" The man upon hearing my question nodded, without any stall. "You must be...Ryuugasaki?"

_R-ryuugasaki?_ Mikado had been bullied for his name before, but no one actually mutilated it into such a form. "N-no, It's Ryuugami-" his voice grew smaller as he noticed that the man was still staring at him. "_Careful, don't anger him! If it really is the same man than.._." Mikado warned himself. Even though Shizuo-san wasn't what he expected, he knew better to judge a book by it's cover.

Shizuo on the other hand didn't show any anger toward Mikado's attempt to correct him. In fact, the man looked the boy over, his guilt growing as he followed the line of bandages before ending at the casted leg. "._..I... messed up...it's just like before..." _Shizuo thought remembering his past mistake, _"It's __impossible like this...,"_

* * *

Shizuo recalled his conversation with Celty the day before.

It was just the other day when he confessed to the Black Rider of his wish to meet new people. Sure, it was odd talking to an empty helmet, but Celty was one of the few people he can talk to without getting angry.

It wasn't that he was alone, it's just that he didn't have much company that would stick to him.

The world was simply divided into two sides in Shizuo's eyes: those who stuck by him and those who didn't. But even amongst those who he considered close, most of them still looked at him with great amount of caution. In that way, his* company was considered very valuable to Shizuo.

Celty had listened carefully to him before taking out her PDA.

Shizuo looked over her shoulder as words appeared on the screen. [This just might by your chance]

Shizuo shook his head, disagreeing strongly, "Celty, even Tom knows that people run away from the mention of my name. I doubt he would like to stick around after I nearly crushed him with a vending machine."

Celty's helmet looked down as if she was sighing. She returned to tapping out a message. [What if he doesn't? He looks like a good kid.]

Shizuo gave a puff on his cigarette. "That's just it, isn't it? He doesn't even look like the type the type that would fight. I doubt he'd go anywhere near one, if he could avoid it."He remembered the crumpled figure of the boy as he picked him up. An innocent face, without a single violent bone in that small body.

Shizuo had a rather distant look on his face. "...Maybe I shouldn't go and see him. He'd probably be terrified out of his wits the next time he sees me."

Celty walked in front of him, making sure that he sees her message. [Why don't you go see him? You never know, you might be surprised...]

Shizuo had great doubts anything would happen. He may have wanted a friend but...not that way. He felt as if he was taking advantage of the situation..But then again, it wasn't like he had much of a chance anyway.

But a sliver of hope was still remained.

* * *

Mikado must have noticed him looking at him with a pained expression. Despite how scary the man might possibly be, he couldn't help but feel bad. Before he knew it, words slipped from his lips.

"Heiwajima-san, are you...okay?"

Shizuo looked at him, blinking incredulously. _"...Are you okay?"_ he repeated the words in his mind.

"Hey, shouldn't I be the one telling you that?" Shizuo responded with a rather gruff tone.

"A-ah, I guess your right." Mikado looked down, rather embarrassed that he forgotten that he was the one with the role as a victim.

"...sorry..." "Huh?" Mikado looked up, unable to hear what the man had mumbled.

:"...I said, I'm sorry..." Shizuo apologized. He looked away, still ashamed at what he had done to the kid. Not only was he harmless, he tried comforting him, which Shizuo knew that very few people would ever even think of doing.

"Ah, it's alright. Though my leg is pretty bad, Kishitani-sensei said that the rest of my body will heal really quickly. He said I was actually pretty lucky!.. Ahahah..." Mikado laughed out of the awkwardness of the situation rather than amusement.

Never had he imagined a situation like this with the one Kida said was nicknamed "The God of Destruction in a Bartender Suit."

There was nothing but silence as he looked up at the so called "God of Destruction" who was still avoiding his gaze. Yet somehow, the man seemed to be more relieved.

"_Is it just my imagination? ...or is the mood somehow getting better?" _Mikado was still unsure of his situation._ "I must be really nervous, my stomach feels like it's in knots." _He tried to distract himself from the uncomfortable the silence as he took another spoonful of his breakfast.

...Only when he felt as if his taste buds were burning, did he realize his horrible mistake. The shock of the strange taste was too much for his unprepared mind. Tears began to roll down his cheeks.

Shizuo finally turned his head at the sound of sniffling. _"Tears? Did I scare him so much that he's crying?"_

He panicked, unused to such a situation. He may have looked after Kasuka, but Kasuka was not really the crying type. Come to think of it, he felt as if Kasuka looked more after him rather than the other way around, due to how Shizuo caused more trouble.

Shizuo could only come to conclusion that he was the one causing the waterworks._"I knew it... I knew I shouldn't have come here." _He turned to leave, "Sorry, I'll go now."

"Wait!" Mikado surprised himself as he called out. "It isn't Heiwajima-san's fault."

Shizuo stopped and turned around. "Hm? Then who's fault would it be?" he said, unconvinced.

"It's...it's.." Mikado once again had lost his confidence and looked down at his meal. He couldn't just go out and say that the food sucked. It would be very rude to Shinra and Celty-san.

Shizuo looked down with him._"The food?" _Looking back up at the boy who was drying his eyes he said,"If you don't like it that much, just don't eat it. Why don't you just tell Shinra that?"

"...Bu-" "No-buts, honestly, it can't be that bad, right?" With that, Shizuo took the spoon from Mikado's frail grip.

"Ah wait! Heiwajima-san! Don-!" The warning came to late as Shizuo already ate a piece of the deceitful meal. Mikado watched in horror as the man chewed before he froze in a mid-bite, his face darkening.

"H-heiwajima-san? A-are you okay?" his answer wasn't answered with a voice, it was more of a sound.

-snap- Mikado paled as the man snapped the spoon in two as easily as a normal man can do with a toothpick.

Mikado retreated into his fortress of blankets and pillows. Yet kept his eyes on the man, painfully aware that the man was fully capable of lifting the bed, with Mikado and all.

It was from there where he watched the transformation occur, as he was able to recognize the same Heiwajima Shizuo he had met 2 days ago. There wasn't a trace of that gentleness that the man had kept before. All there was, was nothing than anger and violence storming in him. _"It's him. It's really him!"_ Mikado was sure by now that this was no mistake.

"SHINRA! WHAT THE HELL HAVE YOU'VE BEEN FEEDING HIM?" the man bellowed as he took the tray from the table. (Mikado noticed that the tray's sides were now misshapen by the man's grip.) With that, he stormed out of the room, Mikado winced as he slammed the door behind him.

"Shizuo? What is this?" Shinra was rather confused. "What is this? WHAT IS THIS?" Shizuo brought the tray to attention. "Are you trying to poison him, or is this another one of your experiments?"

"...Poison? Experiments? What are you talking about? I assure you, absolutely nothing is wrong with Celty's cooking."Shinra was getting rather flustered.

"Oh, is that so? THEN WHY THE HELL WAS HE CRYING OVER IT?" He was ready to throw the tray at the doctor's face, hoping to knock some sense into him. But a flustered Celty beat him to it.

"Ow, Celty~ that hurts" as the doctor got the wind punched out of him. Globs of shadow were flowing out of her neck as she furiously wrote down. [ I told you not to eat it if it doesn't taste good!] "But Celty, they are lying! Your food is wonderful! I doubt Mikado-kun would be poisoned by it. See, I'm pretty sure he's doing fine."

As if to prove it, he entered his patient's room, yet a healthy patient was not what he had found.

"Kid? Hey- kid, Ryuugasaki!" Shizuo tried to shake the boy awake. The boy's pale face was flushed in red as heat emanated from his skin. Shizuo moved aside for Shinra to look. After a small check-up, he said rather sheepishly, "Ah, he really did get food poisoning..."

"...You **poisoned** him?" Shizuo gave a rather nasty glare at the doctor. "Don't worry, he's just having some small symptoms. Just a bit of rest with a little help of medicine and he'll be fine." Shinra concluded with a nod. Celty on the other hand wasn't so easygoing with the situation.

"Ow, Celty, my ear, it's going to stretch! I'm telling you there's nothing wrong with your cooking. Cases like this can happen if you just slightly under-cook something. Oww- Celty!" Celty left the room, dragging Shinra by the ear.

Shizuo was once again left alone in the room with the boy.

A resounding "WHACK!" was heard from the other room. His rage against Shinra was completely gone, knowing Celty could take care of his punishment quite well.

With his anger satisfied, it was replaced with worry. "Will this kid really be alright here? I know I can trust Celty, but.."

"Arghh-!" the man rubbed the back of his head in frustration. He wasn't really much of a deep thinker, nor did he care.

He looked at the sleeping boy, "_peaceful..._" was the word that came to mind. It was very different from the nervousness the boy had shown the whole time he was here.

His eyes wandered from his face to his hair...it looked really soft. Before he knew it, he wanted to touch it.

Reaching slowly, his hand made it's way toward it's destination.

A sigh, came out of the boy's mouth causing him to freeze. But showing no signs of awaking, he continued until he had touched the soft raven locks of the boy.

_...It really is soft.. _Shizuo thought, as he slowly stroked the boy's hair. The act was quite calming to him.

As he continued to pet the unconscious kid, something rather surprising happened.

Even animals knew instinctively just how dangerous he was and bolted whenever he came close. Yet, there the boy was, nuzzling his hand in an attempt to cool off. His hand began to feel rather tingly with the new sensation as he felt the warmth slowly seeped into his skin.

Shizuo flinched, taking back his hand, still warm from the skin of the other person wrapped in blankets. He was startled by the situation, nothing even similar to this had ever occurred to him before.

It was a strange situation for him, _Yet... it isn't bad. _The man thought. In fact, he wanted to try again, he was curious about what would happen a second time.

He reached with a hesitating hand,. _"What if...?"_ Before Shizuo could finish this thought, the door opened, revealing a sighing Shinra.

Before the doctor could see, Shizuo quickly retracted his hand as if he was bitten by a snake. As he did so, a small pain jolted through his arm. (_Ah, I must have pulled a muscle.) _

"Ahh~ I told Celty, it wasn't her cooking that was the problem, over and over again but she won't believe me. Shizuo, if she never cooks for me again, it's your fault."Shinra whined.

Though he didn't seem to have seen the movement, he noticed something off about his friend. "Eh, Shizuo? What's wrong? Is something bother you?"

"..." The man he questioned gave no reply, but Shinra traced his gaze.

"Is it the boy? Don't worry, he'll be fine. He was more likely to die after he was crushed by your flying vending machine." Shinra closed his eyes and got ready for impact. He knew very well how annoyed Shizuo can get with him... but that didn't stop him from teasing his friend.

Yet, the blow that was expected to knock him out never came.

"….eh?" Shinra reopened his eyes slowly to see Shizuo leaving the room and heading for the door. "Shizuo?" Shinra shouted rather surprised by this development.

_Something definitely is wrong! Just what happened?_ The confused doctor shouted in his mind, unable to comprehend the situation. But before he can ask, the man in the bartender suit was already gone.

"...Impossible, impossible..." the man muttered the mantra quietly while walking out of the building. _"Something like this will never happen again... He was unconscious, if he was awake, he would never allowed me to..."_ The man reasoned to himself, to keep his hopes from going up.

"_But... he wasn't scared of you when you entered the room, he even tried to comfort you.." _a small part of him still didn't want to let go of that possibility.

The man sighed before popping out a cigarette. _"tsk...but that was before he saw me angry at Shinra, I've seen him tremble under the sheets. If I see him tomorrow, he'll probably be like the rest of them, scared at the very mention of me. Just watch..."_

Despite these thoughts, he clenched his hand, in an attempt to keep tingling warm sensation from dissipating into the cold night air.

* * *

***yes, it took Shizuo a while to discover that Celty is a female. In the novel, he found she was headless long before he knew what her gender is...which is a little odd, but o well.**

**...AND ITS FINISHED! My gosh, I think my chapters are getting longer and longer. Gah personally, I hope it doesn't get any longer than this... **

**Well I'm finally moving on Sunday so I'm gonna have to disconnect soon, so I'm sorry if my story takes like forever to update. To make it up to you guys, I've made this chapter pretty long...(and how...) **

**Next chapter, we're going to have a closer look on Celty. Once again, thank you for the wonderful support and I still hope you guys continue to support this story. Please look forward to my next update!**


	4. Chapter 3

**Gah, sorry for updating so late! I've been busy with all sorts of things, from moving to a new home, to getting prepared for school. I apologize and thank all of my faithful supporters that have given me story alerts, favorites and reviews (especially the reviews)! **

**I only hope as you continue supporting me as I might have to post later than usual now that school had started. Sorry for the inconvienience! Now, that all that is out of the way... On with the story!**

**Disclaimer: **I do not own Durarara! or it's characters, and I'm fine with that, I just hope I can read more about it from Narita's brilliant work.

* * *

In the darkness beneath his eyelids, Mikado's conciousness awoke as a touch as soft and light feeling was felt on his forehead.

Still unable to open his heavy eyelids, his attention focused on the whimsical fingers on his forehead as they changed the now lukewarm cloth to a much more damper one. Perhaps he was too light-headed at the moment, or maybe he was overthinking it, but somehow... his gut told him... it didn't feel natural.

_Whose could it be?_ Was the question that rung through his head. It didn't seem as precise as Shinra's and he doubted them to be Shizuo's violent fingers, despite how different he is, would come even close to that light feeling on his head. His thoughts wandered to deducting what other resident could possibly be present at the home...Yes... although he was never introduced, there was one more resident...

His sight suddenly turned red as a beam of light had protruded from the doors of the bedroom. Whoever it was, was leaving. Mikado willed his eyes open, wincing as the light obstructed his sight.

But he didn't have to be blind for long, as a shadow moved to the doorway, allowing the boy to see again. With some redeemed sense, he took a close look at who the visitor was.

Though his vision was still blurry, he could still make out the figure standing in the doorway between this room and the next. The person was wearing loose pink clothing, though it was still a blur, Mikado didn't need his clear vision to know it was pajamas. But as Mikado's range of sight moved upward, he wondered if he was really looking at the sight that was there.

...Or, what **wasn't** there...

Mikado bit back a gasp, as Kanra-san's words from a past chatroom conversation popped up.

_[You see, Tanaka Taro-kun, the person on the black bike...]_

_[...doesn't have a head...]_

_Headless, headless..._ The word rang on his mind.

It was abnormal... how the body could still move and function as normal despite having nothing above the neck. The boy continued holding his breath, staring silently as the figure walked slowly as it's headless shadow, mirroring the body, moved across the doorframe and slipped into the light of the next room.

He let out his held breath as the figure left the room, shutting the door quietly behind it. Darkness completely filled the room, leaving the boy with his thoughts.

_No, that's not possible... I'm still dreaming...right? _The boy told himself softly.

_I'm probably just dizzy from that fever and I wasn't really looking at this at my best condition either. She could be staring at me with wide eyes and I wouldn't know. Kanra-san's words are just haunting me again._ He remembered he was the long night where he had struggled to sleep the first time he read those strange words from his computer screen.

Clutching his chest, he tried to stop his heart from pounding rapidly in excitement.

_After all, Celty-san can't possibly be the Black Rider, or even headless for that matter. It's silly right?_

_...right?_

He didn't have time to answer his own question as a wave of dizziness took the boy to his slumber.

* * *

The next time he woke, the room had already filled up in bright light.

Blinking his eyes awake, he tried to think of yesterday's events. The morning greeting from Shinra, Shizuo's visit, and the food poisoning... all in all, it was quite a busy day for him yesterday, despite the fact that he had stayed on the bed the whole time.

He pushed himself up while wiping the dazed expression from his eyes. The not so wet cloth fell from his forehead. The boy picked it up carefully.

_Ah... there was **that** too... _flashes of the event last night filled his mind. _Was it a dream? Or was it a delusion?_

Whatever the case, it made his curious about the remaining resident that he hadn't had a chance of meeting yet.

He gathered what he did know in his head. _All that I know about her is that her name is Celty along with the fact that she's living here with Shinra-san...Could she be Kishitani-sensei's wife?... or maybe his sweetheart? Well, the way he goes on about her I wouldn't be surprised..._ he smiled softly to himself, but quickly paled with another memory. _Ah, but her cooking is... well..._ he pushed the thought aside, trying very hard, not to remember the taste.

_But that's all I know about her, come to think of it, I don't think I've ever really seen her... _With that last thought, he came to the resolution of knowing more about her. After all, he was probably going to stay here for quite a while.

He didn't have to wait long to put into plan, as Shinra entered the room.

"Ah, your awake! Does your stomach hurt? What about your throat?" now that he mentioned it, Mikado noticed that his throat did feel rather dry.

"Ah, I'm a little parched, but everything else seems fine, though I am a little hungry..." he assured the doctor.

"That's good, your fevers down too so you should be fine. Just don't overexert yourself...well, not that you really can." The doctor rubbed the back of his head, while the boy nodded sheepishly.

"And if your hungry, I brought breakfast, well actually Celty brought it. Ah- no, no, she didn't cook it herself. She bought it from a nearby convenience store." he chuckled seeing the boy pale slightly before sighing.

"Ahh~ but seriously, she didn't need to stop cooking just because of that. Just because she doesn't have watermelon cells, doesn't mean that I won't like it. Honestly, anything made by Celty is far better than the ambrosia made for the gods."

"Watermelon... cells?" Mikado questioned, snapping Shinra out of his reverie.

"Hmm? Oh, they are pretty much the sense of taste. Ah yes, Celty also apologized that her food... didn't suit your tastes." Shinra was very reluctant to say that his precious Celty had poisoned anyone.

_She doesn't have a sense of taste either? _Celty was becoming more and more intriquing by the second.

Seeing the chance, to know more about her, he took it_. _"Umm... I don't mean to be rude... but what is Celty-san like?"

"Celty?" the man's face seem to perk up altogether, now that he was given the opportunity to talk about his favorite subject.

"Why, the only thing that can compare to her beauty is none other than the grand earth. Well, actually I don't think the earth can even compare! I've known her ever since I was a little kid. Well, she was more like a reliable older sister when I was younger. But in high school I had never found any girl even close to how attractive she is. I mean just looking at the way she walks, you can tell she is a graceful woman. Anyone would appreciate how her gorgeous curves peek from-"

Mikado felt his face heat up as Shinra went on and on about Celty's finer details. It was sounding like information that his friend would be more interested in. It was becoming to much for him, but before he can try to change subject from this part of the conversation, the sound of phone resonated around the room.

Shinra stopped midway on his conversation on how adorable Celty was to pull out a white cellphone. "Ah- sorry Mikado-kun. I have to answer this call." Mikado nodded allowing the man to leave the room with a "Hello? This is-".

Given the time, he started eating his breakfast. He took a cautious bite, and was very relieved that it wasn't at all like yesterday's meal. It was a good meal in a long time, he felt as if he was starving, but he couldn't completely enjoy it as a pang of guilt hit him. _Poor Celty-san..._

He was tearing up the remains of the fish before Shinra poked his head in.

"Ah, sorry Mikado-kun, but I have to get to work now. If you get bored, you can read the books from that shelf right there." Pointing to a sturdy bookshelf filled with difficult looking books.

"Ah, thank you" Mikado said, and with that Shinra left with a nod.

* * *

It didn't take long for Mikado to realize just how helpful Shinra's last piece of advice was going to be. It seemed like hours since the man had just left. For the past time Mikado had laid there, with nothing to do but stare at the ceiling, as if he could burn a hole through it.

_Ah, I might as well read one of those books that Shinra-san mentioned..._

He got up to the edge of the bed, but as soon as he stood up. The imbalance was clear, a pain shot up from his leg causing him to fall backwards onto the bed once more.

"Oww... I guess I should have expected this. I really haven't been out of bed at all for a while now." Mikado sighed.

"Well, I'm going to have to start walking soon anyway, so I might as well start now." With a new determination he hoisted himself up, using the bed's railing as support as he hopped lightly on one foot.

He was getting closer to the bookshelf, but his endurance and strength couldn't keep up with him. The fever yesterday had drained him, and he was never good with physical action to begin with. With a few clumsy steps, he found himself face down on the floor with a thud.

"Ouch!" he cried as his bumped his nose along with the head onto the floor.

Mikado wasn't so determined anymore. He let his mind wonder as he laid there on the floor, waiting for his strength to return. Suddenly the simple task of getting a book, didn't seem all that simple anymore.

_I shouldn't have done this, what was I thinking?_ He sighed before muttering, "I hope I didn't disturb any of the neighbors."

As if to answer, he heard the door open quietly.

"Ah! Kishitani-sensei! I'm sorry if the nois- Ah, h-hello." The person he was expecting was not at all who he thought it was. In fact, he never expected that person to come again.

"Hey..." the man called Heiwajima Shizuo entered the room, looking at the boy currently lying on his belly on the floor, his eyes glittering as if he was about to cry.

Taking in the situation, he continued. "What are you doing on the floor?"

"Eh? U-um it's just that I wanted a book.."

_Book? _Sure enough, there was a bookshelf quite a few inches away from Mikado's grasp.

Mikado saw the man come toward him, reaching with his hands. He panicked.

_Is he going to hit me for being stupid?_ He remembered quite well, how easily the man got mad at someone he knew. How quickly would he get mad at a stranger?

He winced, preparing himself for the blow, but... it never came.

"Eh?" Mikado opened his eyes to find that the man was carrying him. Being careful, that he didn't make the boys injuries anymore uncomfortable.

"Honestly, what is that freak thinking? Getting an injured kid to get one of those heavy books."

Shizuo said putting Mikado on the bed, lightly frowning. Mikado couldn't help but watch him quietly.

_He's so different from his angered self..._ _maybe he's not such a bad person as he seems?_ Shizuo must have noticed him staring as he turned to Mikado with a stare, as if waiting for his next reaction.

"A-ah thank you." Mikado apologized looking down in embarrasment for being caught staring.

Shizuo on the other hand, nodded before walked to the bookshelf.

"Which one did you want to read?" he asked, suprising Mikado once more.

"E-eh? Um... actually I don't really know. I haven't really seen them...maybe the red one at the far left?" he pointed toward the bookshelf, choosing the thinnest book he can see, not that it was that much of a difference to the rest...

Shizuo took it out of the bookshelf before cracking it open.

"..."

Despite the fact that it was all in the language he was familiar with, he could only understand barely a third of it. He handed it quickly to Mikado, sensing an upcoming headache, if he continued looking.

"...Do you really like reading this stuff?" Mikado flipped open to a page, browsing it before looking up at him. "Actually, no... I don't even know what the first word means. Heheh" the boy chuckled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

Shizuo couldn't help but get distracted as that hand moved lightly along the feathery locks.

The boy, getting rather uncomfortable with that the man wasn't doing anything other than staring at him. _Did I do something wrong?_

"U-um, it's not like I don't appreciate Heiwajima-san, for helping me get the book. It's just that it can't be helped that there's nothing really to do around here. I'm actually glad, Heiwajima-san came, it gets really quiet without anyone around." Mikado smiled softly.

It was now Shizuo's turn to be surprised.

"...It's okay for me to be here?" Shizuo asked with a hesitant voice.

"Hmm? I don't see why not, besides I think it's nice to have company. I'm stuck in bed after all." the boy logically pointed out. "...Is there something wrong?...with Heiwajima-san being here?"

"No, no..." The man waving his hand from side to side as if brushing away a dark cloud. _It's just that I didn't think anyone would let me stay after I did something like that.. well, other than the flea and that freak, but they can't really count..._

The atmosphere around the two became much more breathable. As the tension began to dwindle more rapidly, the flow of talk increased as well.

"Ah, Kishitani-sensei, mentioned that you went to Raira Academy as well."

"Raira? Yeah, I went there. But if I tell you I liked it... it would be a lie." his expression darkened at the memory of the flea tearing up his peaceful life.

"... A-ah! Umm, Kishitani-sensei also mentioned that you and Celty-san are good friends as well." Mikado quickly steered the conversation away; fearing unwanted results which included having him knocked out by the thick red book which was now lying forgotten on the nearby table... yet it was too close to Shizuo's hands to be a comfort.

This could also be a good opportunity to learn more about the mysterious Celty as well.

"Celty?" Mikado became relieved as the dark expression left his face. "Yeah, we're friends. He's much more comfort, than Shinra. I can tell you that"

"Comfort? Is Shinra-san really that-" Mikado froze as a thought struck his head.

_Wait... did he just say **he?**_ _...h-he probably made a mistake. _He turned to Shizuo who was looking rather puzzled at the moment.

"Umm.. Shizuo-san, what do you think of Celty-san as?"

Shizuo was curious with the sudden question, yet he answered anyway.

"Celty is someone I go talk to often, well not really talk... it's mostly me doing the talking; he's pretty quiet. Maybe the reason why I can stand him easily. Well anyway, he's usually busy with a delivery job, but we often hang out when he's not busy."

Mikado was suddenly thrown into complete confusion. _Wait! Shinra-san said that Celty was a woman and known her from the time he was a kid. But Heiwajima-san is also a good friend but he says Celty is a guy! It's makes more sense if Celty was a woman, since Shinra-san has known her, er... maybe him... for so long. Yet is it possible to for someone to be adrogonys enough to fool someone close to them?_

"Oi! Ryuugasaki! Are you alright?" Shizuo was getting rather hectic that Mikado was there clutching his head in confusion.

"Ah-! I'm fine!" he snapped out of it, forgetting to correct his name. But the question still lingered in his mind, growing larger and larger.

Before he knew it, he blurted out, "But Heiwajima-san, isn't Celty-san a woman?"

"..."

A pregnant pause filled the room.

But before Shizuo could answer, an outburst filled the room.

"Of course Celty is a woman! What else would she be?" Shinra apparently had returned.

"...Really? She is?...my bad." Shizuo seemed to have finally found his voice.

"...My bad...? Shizuo! You really didn't know? How is it even possible! Can't you notice, just by looking how attractive she is? Look, look at how her body is wonderfully shaped!" Shinra could not compute how someone could even make such a mistake that without thinking he dragged an unsuspecting Celty, who wandered over in curiousity, into the room.

"But then again, Shizuo's brain is as developed as a kindergarten kid, so maybe you don't have that maturity to notice this kind of-... Celty? What is it? You look rather flustered, your shadows are gushing out... ah!" He noticed his mistake.

_Come to think of it, Shizuo would probably be trying to crush me by now but... _he turned to the man. Sure enough, Shizuo's attention was not on him but on Mikado who was staring wide eyed at the headless figure before him.

Shizuo thought that the boy was probably going to faint over this, he seemed so timid.

Yet, after a few minutes of restless silence of watching how the boy would react. The boy did close his eyes, but he reopened them again, as in disbelief.

This was not at all suprising since most people probably wouldn't believe that a headless person was standing in the same room.

Yet what was so strange is that the boy did not faint, or even screamed for that matter. Instead, a smile slowly filled his face.

"Ah, g-good afternoon, you must be Celty-san?" He had a trembling voice, yet it did not seem to be from fear.

For Celty, the normal reaction from humans, were the shouts or screams of alarm or suprise. It was strange, but perhaps refreshing? Either way, she took out her PDA and greeted him as well.

[Yes, I'm Celty. It's nice to meet you Mikado-kun. I would have met you before but well...]

She pointed to her missing head as to make a point. Mikado nodded his head in understanding.

"A-ah! I see. U-um, would it be rude if I were to ask a question?"

The whole situation seemed surreal as if he was dreaming it. Yet, he's saw the headless figure nod in agreement before typing out. [ I don't see why not. It was pretty rude of me to introduce myself now.]

"Hmm? No, no! Not at all! But u-umm could you be... The Black Rider?" Mikado noticed that he was still trembling in excitement.

Celty nodded. [Shinra said that you wanted to know more about me...would you like to?]

When Mikado nodded with a "Yes!.. i-if you don't mind..." she propped herself onto the bed and the conversation between two quiet people began.

It was nice watching the two get along. It was an even nicer feeling, seeing the kid smile. He would have stayed longer, but the message from his cellphone told him he had to meet Tom.

He signaled at the door, telling the others that he had to leave. The two on the bed nodded, waving him goodbye. Shinra on the other hand followed him out, quietly claiming "It seems I'm not really needed here anyways."

But as they went out, the doctor seemed to be up to his bouncy self, ready to tease Shizuo. Apparently, he still couldn't forgive him for mistaking Celty's gender.

"Shizuo, a second visit? I'm surprised. I mean, it's been forever since you bothered to bring anyone you injured here and now your visiting the Mikado-kun again. Should I be proud that you are actually growing out of your mentally childlike sta- owww! ow.. ow. owww... Shizuo stop! My arm! It's going to snap! I need that!"

In time, Shizuo let go with the mere fact that Shinra really did need his arm and more specifically Mikado needed it as well.

"Well then, you should expect to see me more often... I'm coming back tommorow." Shizuo said turning towards the door.

"Wait, again? Shizuo, I might not be able to survive if you keep com-" he was stopped when Shizuo's finger met his forehead, in a light flick.

It was a gesture common between friends whether they were joking around or playing a punishment game. But apparently due to how the flicker was none other than Shizuo, the result did not end as harmless as it would have been.

Shinra did not rub his forehead and complain that he was going to get a mark. No, instead as soon as the impact was felt, Shinra fell unconcious on the floor.

Shizuo on the other hand, left leaving the poor man on the floor to recover from his concussion. Unknown to the other two residents who were busy chatting in a room not far away, but nonetheless, oblivious to the event.

* * *

"Ah, Shizuo. You're a little late today, did something happen?" Tom had been waiting for him near the park.

"Ah, nothing really. There were just some things that came up." Shizuo answered, scratching his head, as they took a stroll for their next target.

_Things? I wonder what it is, he's been acting a little odd lately. He doesn't look at all scruffed up or angry, so at least I can guess it's not a fight..._ Tom was rather relieved that he wasn't angry. It was pretty difficult to keep him in place when Shizuo was already ready to blow before the job even started.

"...Hey Tom, do you happen to know what books are popular among teens lately?" Shizuo quietly asked.

_Books? Since when did he take reading as a hobby?_

"Sorry, I'm not really sure about what kids these days read...Why do you want to know?" Tom couldn't help being curious.

"Ah, it's this kid... Argh, you know what? Nevermind..." Shizuo went quiet after that.

_Kid?..._ Tom kept quiet, but the idea couldn't stay from his mind. _…Don't tell me... is it an illegitamate child? !_

* * *

**Wah~ Done! I'm so sorry for taking so long. I know, I know I'm really slow at this... -_-**

**As a way to say sorry, I've decided to make some omakes every now and then. **

**They may or may not have anything to do with the story. The characters may be very OOC sometimes in the omake, so you have been warned!**

**Omake: Shizuo's Discovery**

"Are you sure it's around here?" Shizuo asked turning to a figure wearing a skintight suit with an unique looking helmet.

Celty, having no current way to communicate simply nodded. With that, the two began their search around the empty lot.

Celty had recently lost her precious PDA, while she was on another odd job for a certain information broker.

The helmet tilted downward as if sighing. _Izaya's jobs always tended to leave a bad aftertaste, but I never thought something like this would happen._

She pushed a bush away before noticing something gleaming behind the fence.

_Ah! Could that be?_ She rushed forwards in hopes that she could find her PDA.

"Celty, it's not over here!" Shizuo called before putting the old trashed bin in place.

There was no response. "Celty?" he called again. This time there was a sound of a desperate rustle.

Shizuo rushed to the spot, to find Celty with her helmet stuck in the fence.

"Ah, Celty! I'll get you out of there!" Shizuo grabbed her sides.

_Ah- wait!_ Celty panicked, _if he pulls any further... _she tried desperately to signal that his help wasn't needed.

But before she knew it, she was pulled out easily though, not completely, her helmet was still on the other side.

Shizuo silently waited for the man to scream, not out of fear (it was very difficult for her to imagine that) but probably out of anger for decieving him.

...but that was not what happened. In fact, she was surprised to see the man turn away before walking away in a swaying style with such gloomy aura.

Listening quietly, she heard mutterings of "... I beheaded him... it's gone...pulled it clean off..."

The man apparently thought that he had pulled hard enough with his overwhelming strength and ended up beheading he had thought carefully, he would have noticed that it would be odd for a person to remain standing after they lost their head. But Shizuo didn't seem to have registered that in his despairing mood.

_NO! Shizuo you got it wrong! It's supposed to be like this! _Celty tried shouting, flailing her arms wildly in an attempt to get his attention..

But all that came out was a large waft of smoky shadow.

**And that would be all for now. What do you think of it? Yes, I know I have a pretty strange sense of humor, ahahaha... **

**Thank you all for your support! I enjoy getting your reviews, and I like the tips that you give me. It's a little harder to have time to write, now that I'm in school now. But I'll try to get the next chapter done quickly, please wait patiently for the next update. **


	5. Chapter 4

**I am sooo sorry I counldn't update sooner. I was just so busy with college essays and relatives coming over for the holidays that it was pretty hard to find time to write this. I really wished that I put up a hiatus or something to note about this. Thank you for all the reviews though, they really helped me to continue on!**

**As an apology, I wrote a fluffly MsMk oneshot to make it up. **

**Anyway enough of this, here's the long awaited chapter!**

**

* * *

**

_Is it time yet?_

Eyes shifted from an orange cell phone to the begging man before him, only to return back to the screen of the cell phone.

"Please, just a little more time, I've got to get Naomi a gift but I already spent my salary." The man was on his hands and knees hoping to appeal to the debt collector's sympathetic sides.

"Now, now, we can't do that. You've already asked for more time before, isn't it time to pay up?" Tom sighed, rather absentminded himself. The act was something commonly seen in the job and currently Tom was more curious with Shizuo's actions.

Knowing precisely how long the "story on how he was blowing his money over a hostess," was going to take, he ignored the man, and focused his attention on Shizuo.

Shizuo was looking at his phone yet again, staring at it intensely through his purple glasses as if he willing the minutes to move.

It was a scene, though it only started a few days ago, it was beginning to become a common occurrence.

Tom could already see signs of irritation beginning to show, it seemed like Shizuo just couldn't spare any patience today. He was relieved that it was more out of impatience than anger, but he couldn't let his guard down yet, after all the way the man was twitching, that irritation could quickly turn into an all out rage.

"Shizuo, why don't you take the rest of the day off today? You look like your ready to blow."

"Ah? Really? ...Sorry Tom, I'm just a little distracted today." Shizuo said apologetically.

"It's fine, just get whatever you have in mind over with." Tom said in a nonchalant wave.

Shizuo nodded before he hurried off toward the direction of a certain underground doctor's residence.

Tom watched him off. …_There again? He sure goes there often now, how long has it bee? Nearly a week now... To see his "illegitimate child" is it?_

Tom had never clarified the subject with Shizuo yet. Though he had been with him for quite a few years, he wasn't sure if this subject would be found in the "safe zone."

And so, the mysterious person his fellow co-worker was greeting was labeled as the "illegitimate child" within Tom Tanaka's mind.

* * *

Shizuo hurried to his destination while cautiously carrying a small box with it's precious contents.

That was until he stopped and noticed an all too familiar figure in front of the building.

"IIIIZZAAAYYYAAAAA!" Shizuo threw the box in his hands; completely forgetting it's importance. " I thought something stinked around here!"

Izaya just dodged it easily, having it land on the floor. "Oh? It's seems like it's something rather light this time? Are you losing your touch?"

Izaya took a closer look at the box. "Hmm? Cake box? What is it Shizu-chan? Even a monster like you has something to celebrate about?"

Shizuo quickly took a nearby street sign, getting ready to strike that annoying smirk that was appearing before him. "Like I would tell you! Didn't I tell you to get the hell out of Ikebukuro?"

Izaya assumed a thinking position, tapping his chin as if he were in deep thought. "Did you? Maybe you did, I don't know~ My memories must have fled at the sight of your scary face."

The man neatly dodged the blow from the "God of Destruction."

"Why the hell are you around here for? I thought it was you snooping around here for the last three days!"

"Ah, you found me? Congratz, Shizu-chan, and here I thought it was a good hiding spot. you must be proud…." Though he wore a smile, but the words seemed all but happy.

Shizuo looked at him with narrowed eyes. "Are you treating me like an idiot?"

Izaya just got up from his spot, dusting off his pants as if the threat of his archenemies didn't even bother him.

"I'm just saying Shizu- chan. That since you already accomplished the job of finding me, you'll give yourself a pat on the back, and let me through? After all, you're the reason I couldn't go in."

"SHUT UP! ANSWER THE QUESTION AND DON'T CALL ME THAT!" Shizuo gave another swing, which Izaya once again danced around.

"Hmm, if you insist on an answer, I came to visit Shinra's home. Why? Is it wrong to visit an old friend?"

"You don't have any friends." was the blunt reply.

"So cruel, Shizu-chan~! But I guess it's true… not that it really matters, I love all humans anyway!" He flung his arms open, as if to accept the world's love. It was a sight any normal passerby would think strange before hurrying away to stay uninvolved.

After Izaya's little pose to no one in particular, he turned to the man who was currently grinding his teeth in annoyance, "Well, don't get me wrong... I don't actually like you."

"Like I care! Even if he was your friend, I doubt that's what your here for. So quit jumping around," He moved forward in a swing, "…AND ANSWER THE FUCKING QUESTING!"

The ground where the information broker was just on seconds ago was shattered by the force of the swing of the sign pole.

"As always, you're so irrational..." Izaya took the time to shake his head. "How do expect me to answer when you are trying to crush me in any given moment?"

"..." Shizuo just stood silently before readying himself to throw the pole.

Izaya eyed him with caution, "...well, since I don't think you'll kindly let me in, I'll just take my leave then...for now."

Izaya already looked like he was ready to make his getaway.

"?" Shizuo quickly threw the pole, hoping to crush the man.

But alas, his hopes fleeted as Izaya darted off, the projectile weapon barely missing him as he disappeared into the streets.

* * *

"Heiwajima-san, You're here again!" Mikado said as he put a book down. "Ah-"

Shizuo entered the room with a rather bitter expression. A single verse of "That damn flea…" was barely heard in his muttering.

_Flea? _Mikado pondered at this. _Kida never mentioned anything about fleas before. I didn't think they were really important…" _He frowned at the thought, _"…but to bother Heiwajima-san… It must be pretty big._

Mikado shuddered at the thought of a giant flea hopping along the streets of Ikebukuro. Going from victim to victim, sucking away at their lives. Once it was done with one, it happily latched itself on another before it repeated the process of making its victim miserable.

"Hey, are you okay? You look sort of pale." Shizuo's voice interrupted his thoughts.

"Yes, I'm fine, I'm just a little nervous that's all, but it's just a walk right?" Mikado said with a smile trying to push away the thought of an overgrown, blood-sucking insect.

A peaceful silence was shared between the two.

It was interrupted when Shizuo remembered the barely noticeable weight he was carrying.

"I brought something for you." He brought the cake box to notice.

"E-eh? Heiwajima-san didn't need to…"

Shizuo waved an arm nonchalantly, looking at him in the eye. "It's fine, your leg is getting better so is it wrong to celebrate?"

Mikado shook his head slightly in defeat.

With that, Shizuo opened the box, but to his shock he noticed that the cakes were far from the shapes Shizuo had first bought them.

None of the cakes were in the clean-cut way as he had bought them from the bakery, but rather they were a crumpled mess. The vanilla, angel cake was mixed with the chocolate, devils food cake, and the red velvet with the Monte Blanc. Some were no longer identifiable.

Shizuo bought several slices of different cakes, unsure of which had Mikado's favor, but such a case didn't even matter now.

_How did…_ Shizuo's mind darted back, trying to remember what had occurred.

As usual, the one behind this problem and almost all the others, was none other than the flea… though he was the one did throw it.

He stared at the crumpled cakes in disappointment.

"Ah...sorry, I'll go get another one."

Mikado looked at the disheartened man who was heading for the door. Quickly, without thinking, he grabbed a chunk of the horribly misshapen pastry before stuffing it in his mouth.

"Issh diirre-shesh" he said in a muffled tone, his mouth filled with the sweet taste of filling.

Shizuo blinked in surprise at the Mikado with his stuffed cheeks. He could see crumbs and a dash of vanilla decorating Mikado's face, as the boy struggled to swallow the contents in his mouth.

All in all, it reminded Shizuo of one of those chipmunks he saw in the park who gathered far too many nuts than it could carry.

…The sight was too much.

"Pfft…..HAHAHAHA!"

Mikado was startled by the sudden sound, nearly choking in surprise.

Shizuo noticed the strangling noise coming from the boy in front of him.

"Ah, sorry, sorry. I didn't mean to scare you there… But you're right, it's no good wasting good food now is there?"

Walking back to his spot, he took a nearby napkin before stopping in front of Mikado.

"But we should take our time and enjoy it, rather than swallowing it. Shouldn't we?" He wiped the crumbs off the boy's face with a grin.

Mikado nodded silently, his face red with embarrassment, not to how he was treated like a child. But rather to how he behaved like one in the spur of the moment.

Shizuo looked in approval before he headed to the door once more.

But stopped at the sight of Mikado looking alarmed. He grinned, " I'm not going to leave, but why don't I get you some milk so you to wash that down?"

* * *

It was a silent moment, as the two ate the tasty mess of cakes.

Mikado thought that the mixture made the taste even more interesting, not to mention delightful.

He looked at Shizuo wondering if he was thinking the same thing and found the bartender eating the sweets with a content look on his face. It was a strange sight; to see one of the people Kida warned was one of the most dangerous, enjoying cakes like a small child.

… _To have that affection towards sweets- just didn't match his appearance._ He thought.

But he doubted that gentle persona was something most people would think would match Shizuo either.

What was more amusing to him however, was to see him downing the milk glass after glass like no tomorrow, Mikado couldn't help but giggle at the sight.

"Heheheh.."

Shizuo looked up at the sound. "Do you find something funny?"

Mikado ceased his laughter quickly, fearing that he would incur the man's wrath.

"Ah no, I'm not laughing at you Heiwajima-san…" His voice grew smaller as he was watched by a stare that didn't seem believe him. "I just thought that it's a little funny that a bartender is drinking milk with such fervor."

"…Heh, I guess that is pretty strange," Shizuo said with a grin, "but- I'm not a bartender anymore."

Mikado looked questionably at this, "Eh? You're not?"

"Yeah, I got fired a long ago."

"I'm sorry…"

"Hmm? What are you saying sorry for? It's not like you're the one who got me fired." Shizuo said remembering the unpleasant one who did.

"Ah, I thought Shizuo-san seemed to be attached to the job, since he wears that bartender uniform all the time."

"This outfit?" He pinched the edge of the vest. "No, I don't even like beer… or anything else bitter, actually."

"…" Mikado couldn't help but agree silently with Shinra that some aspects of Shizuo were pretty childish… but perhaps he was much more honest this way.

"Ah, but don't tell Kasuka that I got fired though." Shizuo said, remembering his brother's wish.

"Kasuka?*"

"Yeah, shouldn't you know about him? He had a movie come out recently…"

"Eh, movie? Heiwajima-san, your brother must be pretty famous,"

"Yeah, I'm surprised you haven't heard of him..." Shizuo frowned.

"No…I'm pretty sure I don't recall a name like that before…" he tilted his head, frowning to remember a name even remotely similar. "Well… I just came to Ikebukuro, and Kida-kun hasn't really shown me around...so maybe that's way?"

_...Come to think of it, even from the time I arrived, he was more interested in picking up girls than anything else. _Mikado sighed inwardly.

Shizuo stared at the boy with his deadpan expression before getting up to clear the dishes.

"...Well that settles it."

"Huh?" A confused expression was worn on the boy's face.

"While we're out, let's go watch a movie together." Saying it like it was the most logical thing to say.

"Eh?" Mikado looked up in surprise. "Is it all right? Aren't I troubling Heiwajima-san already?"

"You're not, besides Kasuka might be upset if he found out I didn't watch it anyway." He stated.

_...well, I'm not exactly lying, _Shizuo brother would be glad, but he was sure that Kasuka wouldn't burst into tears either if he had missed it.

"Ah… and call me Shizuo, Heiwajima-san is a little too formal for me."

"Then... Please look after me, Hei- I mean, Shizuo-san?" Mikado said bowing lightly.

"S-sure, whatever..." He said as scratched the back of his head in embarrassment; he wasn't used to all this reliance.

"Oh, what's this? Are we already having plans Shizuo?" The two turned to find that Shinra had returned.

Shizuo just ignored him, as Shinra walked closer to Mikado bringing the new crutches.

"Welcome back, Kishitani-sensei"

"It sure is nice to get a greeting, if only more people were considerate like this, High School might have been much smoother." He eyed Shizuo. "But I digress, despite how they say a mature rice plant lowers its head*, I have high doubts he would ever grow up anyway."

Snap.

Though Shinra couldn't see it from his side, Mikado could see Shizuo's fork twist in into a strange angle with the slightest of ease.

He couldn't help but feel like it was like a situation where one was awaiting for a bomb to go off.

"A-ah, S-Shinra san, can I try those crutches now?" Mikado said, trying to change the subject.

"Ah, yes I forgot." Shinra said coming closer to the boy who was now sighing in relief. "Well, here we are. Mikado-kun, try them out."

Handing the crutches over, Shinra watched as Mikado sidled to the side of the bed before awkwardly try to position the crutches in the right way.

He got up in a sudden movement, only to fall backward onto the bed; reminding Shinra of newborn deer he once saw in a nature documentary.

"Ah, Mikado-kun, take it slow, there's no reason to rush. Shizuo-kun may be the impatient type, but I'm sure he can wait for something like this. Isn't that right Shizuo?"

The doctor turned to meet his friend eyeing him with a heated gaze that seemed to say "Don't treat me like an idiot!" but Shizuo turned to meet the boys gaze afterward and nod his head slightly as if to prove to Mikado that he'll do what he was told.

Mikado nodded in return and grasped the crutches again with a determined look in his eyes. Summoning his below-average strength, he pulled himself slowly.

"Even if Kishitani-Sensei tells me such, a thing, I've been doing nothing but staying in bed all the time. I'm very grateful. Sensei, Celty-san and even Shizuo-san stopped by on their own time to take care of me. So…"

Finally able to stand firmly once more on his feet, he looked and smiled. "I feel like I should do my best as well, so I can thank you all properly."

Staring at the smile, Shizuo couldn't help but feel warm inside. How often was it when he had heard someone say they were grateful to him? He wasn't even sure if his name and the word 'grateful' were even possible to be together, given his personality. Speaking of which was it even possible. He was surely dreaming wasn't he?

He wrapped his mind on the situation, surely, a kid like the one in front of him couldn't exist.

"Ah Mikado, as I thought, you are a really good kid." Shinra's voice snapped Shizuo out of his thoughts.

As if he could read his thoughts, he heard Shinra mumble in a quiet voice, "It makes me wonder how the world would be like if there are more kids like you…"

Shizuo could only silently agree.

* * *

"Hahh…" The slightly chilly air, stung Mikado's nose. But it just made the outside air all the more refreshing to his lungs.

After circling the room in a few practice walks with his crutches; Shinra agreed to let him go outside. But, with supervision in the form of Shizuo of course.

And so there they were walking in the busy streets of Ikebukuro. Though they weren't exactly side by side.

Shizuo noticed this, and tried to come closer. He was to help him if the boy fell or got too tired after all.

He took a step closer, yet, somehow Mikado seemed just as far as before.

_Maybe I didn't take a big enough step? _he thought as he took a much more bigger step.

But just as the same as before, the distance between them didn't seem to get any closer.

Confused and slightly annoyed, he took another step, watching their feet closely.

Surely enough, he saw Mikado's shoes shuffle slowly to the side.

A thought finally occurred to him.

_Ah… He must be still scared of me. _Shizuo brushed his hair back with his fingers sighing lightly. _It's understandable though._

He couldn't help but feel slightly downhearted. He had hoped today, he would have fun with his new to push away the feeling of depression he scanned the streets to try to occupy his mind with other things.

Mikado on the other hand, was watching him silently.

The student had tried to keep at least 2 feet away from him out of caution. But it seems like he was found out by the way Shizuo tried coming closer.

At first he was sure the man would be angry at him, but instead to his surprise, he saw a much more somber expression instead.

_Come to think of it, he did look forward to this walk..._

Feeling bad, he came to a stop to try to apologize to him.

With a hesitant voice, at the body still walking ahead he bleated out "Umm…. S-shizuo-san. I want to sa-"

The man in front of him stopped, before all of a sudden rushing ahead.

"Shizuo-san?" Mikado questioned, as the person in question continued running, taking a signpost with him.

Mikado froze, unwilling to take another step toward the area the armed man had just ran. And continued watching Shizuo run forward until turned the corner into another street leaving the boy's sight.

"_Ahh…could it be?"_a certain man with a parka popped up in his head.

As if to answer his question, a cacophony of crashes were heard from a distance, followed with the sound of breaking glass. A flying garbage can came into view, signaling the start of the battle. A few seconds later, from that very same corner, a river of humans came his direction, pouring out onto the street, in an attempt to get away from the chaos behind them.

Mikado wasn't sure if he should just wait patiently or run away like the rest of the people. He didn't have much time to think, as it looked like a stampede was headed his way.

In order to keep from getting trampled, Mikado put all his effort to hobble to the side as fast as he could.

He would have made it to the side, (or at least that was what he wanted to think, but he knew too well that even without his physical disability, he probably wouldn't be able to make it anyway) if it weren't for a hand that pulled him back into the stream of people.

"There you are Mikado-kun!~ I was wondering how to get to you, but what luck to find you right here in front of me." Mikado turned to find a smirking Izaya behind him.

"Ah- h-hello, Izaya-san." Mikado said, still unsure of what to make of the man.

"Hmm, what's with that greeting? Not shy are you? After all, we did meet twice now, shouldn't we be acquaintances?"

"But Izaya-san…I barely know you." Mikado nervously remarked

"Ah, that's right!" Izaya said before putting his hands on the teen's shoulders, pushing him away from the direction he came from.

"But that makes it all the more reasonable to get to know each other isn't it?"

"…" Mikado wasn't sure how to answer. But he didn't need to as the man continued to talk anyway.

"I remember our first meeting was short and our second was rudely interrupted. Come to think of it… did I really lose Shizu-chan that easily?"

A street sign flew between them, thoroughly embedding itself in the concrete in front of them, causing the crowd around them to scatter. Mikado stumbled foreword in surprise.

"Speak of the devil…" Mikado heard Izaya mutter as he turned to see the man with a dark expression on his face for the slightest moment.

That expression was replaced quickly with a smile as the man turned to talk with the violent one staring at them from a distance.

"Ah, Shizu-chan, was it you who brought him here?" Izaya said grabbing onto Mikado again.

"…" Shizuo stayed silent clenching his hand even further. Unsure of what Izaya would do to Mikado if he said yes.

But against his hope, the flea's mouth continued to grow wider.

"I should really thank you." Izaya said with a grin. "But- Mikado and I have a lot of catching up to do so we'll be going now."

And with that the man sprinted off, pulling Mikado with him.

The pull was sudden, causing the boy to fall from his crutches.

"Uwwaah!" he said in surprise.

"HEY!" Shizuo started, trying to get through the crowd.

Izaya turned around in time to save Mikado's head from hitting the concrete.

"Whoops, seems like I forgot about your leg. I'm sorry that Shizu-chan did such a thing to you. He can be quite the monster you see."

"Umm… I-I don't think-" Mikado started.

"You don't think we can get away in time? That's fine. I can just do this."

"Wait, that's not what I - " Before he can finish his sentence, he was lifted into the air to find himself on the shoulder of the one known as Orihara Izaya.

"Let's go now shall we?~"

Mikado stayed silent as he had a feeling that even if he said something he would be ignored again. Not that even had words to say. At the moment he wasn't sure just who exactly was saving him.

Was it Shizuo saving him from being currently kidnapped(?) by this odd stranger that goes by the name Orihara Izaya?

Or was Izaya actually carrying him to safety from the raging, therefore dangerous Shizuo who was currently throwing a man in the air.

Or perhaps, his friend was actually correct about the two and that he was in great trouble?

Either way, he couldn't do a thing about the current situation. So with these things in mind, he had no choice other than to be carried like a sack of potatoes by Izaya as they disappeared deeper into the sea of people.

* * *

***Remember, even if Mikado knew about the movies he doesn't know Kasuka's real name, due to how the public knows him as Yuuhei Hanajima.**

***A Japanese proverb that means: Maturity brings humility and respect for others.**

**And there we have it! I've been working on this on my spare time for the last 4 months whenever I had free time, (which wasn't a lot mind you). Anyhoo, since it took so long, I can't say that I'll update soon, since I said that last time and you know how that went… -_-; **

**So! I'm just promising that I will update it, eventually…**

**(I'll start right away, but who knows when I'll finish? T-T )**

**Ah, yes I'm considering writing another durarara fic called ****Gakuen Heaven **** (for obvious reasons of course ' . ) in the later (hopefully not that much later) future. Yet, since I'm having trouble even updating my current story, I'm just putting that idea on hold for now. I've got great ideas that are stuck in my head for it yet… writing it on the other hand, takes quite a bit of time. **


End file.
